


Pre-Bendy Buddies: The New Employee

by HershelChocolate



Series: Pre-Bendy Buddies [1]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: Gen, batim pre-bendy buddies au, henry just rolls with it, joey cant budget things, p-bbau, pre-bendy buddies au, sammy is a jerk, wally enjoys puns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-24
Updated: 2017-05-25
Packaged: 2018-10-23 17:00:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10723491
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HershelChocolate/pseuds/HershelChocolate
Summary: The Pre-Bendy Buddies AU! Sammy, Wally, Henry, and Joey get into ridiculous situations and are Cool Friends before Bendy shows up and ruins everything like he always does.Today's subject? Wally and how much he annoys literally everyone else in the studio





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! Thanks so much for all your amazing comments and support on my last fic Henry and the Ink Machine! Here's something new for you all! I'll be basing most of this off of my own headcanons and using the designs I posted on my tumblr @hershelchocolate so feel free to go check them out! Enjoy!

"Hey! Wait up! Excuse me!"

Henry sighed and turned around. Coming towards him was the newest member of the crew, a young up-and-coming artist named Wally. 

"Hey, sorry but I can't find Joey's office. Do you know where it is?"

Henry simply pointed him in the right direction. Wally's face lit up, and he dashed down the hall, shouting thank you's behind him. 

Henry wasn't sure why Joey hired him. Wally had originally wanted to be an artist for the studio, or a voice actor, but instead Joey gave him the much more exciting job of janitor. 

"He'll learn things as he stays around," Joey had explained the day before. "We'll see where he goes in a few months and if he deserves a promotion."

Henry didn't think it was right to employ a kid just to see how they did. What if Wally didn't improve fast enough for Joey? What would he do then?

Henry was just about to go to his desk when he bumped into Sammy, the studio's music director. He was... _eccentric_ was probably the best word for it. More than once Henry could have sworn he saw him talking to the many cardboard cutouts of Bendy around the studio, bbut he didn't think much of it.

"Hey, Henry! Watch where you're going!"

"Hey calm down Sammy, what's got you all stressed?"

Sammy sighed and pushed his glasses farther up his face. "It's that new kid, Pauly? He's so... _loud._ He doesn't understand that he's interrupting the very delicate song-making process! Why is Joey still keeping him around?"

Henry back up towards the direction of his desk. "I'm not sure but er...good luck with your...song-making process...?"

Sammy huffed and walked down the hall, no doubt going to bug the musicians about the specifics of a song. 

There seemed to be a lot more people around the studio these days. Joey was introducing lots of new characters, and these characters needed voice actors. More people meant more desks, more desks meant more renovations for the studio, and that meant that it was almost impossible to get some peace and quiet anymore. 

Henry had no sooner sat down to work when the sound of a falling trash can reluctantly caught his attention. He turned, and witnessed Wally trying in vain to get his foot un-stuck from one of the many trash bins in the building. 

"Er...A little help please...?"

Henry groaned and got up to help the poor youth. He didn't know what he was getting into in this studio, and being clumsy wasn't going to help in the slightest. 

"Hey thanks uh...?"

"Henry."

"Thanks Henry! Say er...you haven't seen any keys around here have you?"

\----- 

Sammy emerged from his office, excited at the prospect of getting the orchestra to attempt to play his newest song. He had to admit, he was particularly proud of this one. He had always felt drawn towards Boris as an interesting character, and writing a calm yet foreboding song for his newest episode was proving to be quite the challenge. 

He walked quickly down the hall, eager to get to the recording studio when he, quite literally, ran into Wally who had just clumsily dropped several of the seven trash bags he seemed to be carrying.

"Hey! How about moving whatever you're doing somewhere else?"

"O-oh, sorry about that! Er, my name's Wally! What's yours?"

Sammy brushed past Wally's extended hand. "Not interested. Just clean those up, trash kid."

Wally huffed and almost tossed one of his fulls bags of trash at Sammy, yet he thought better of it and continued on his way. 

At some point down the hall, he heard his new boss Joey having what sounded like an anxious conversation with the animator he had met yesterday. Henry, was it?

Casually walking over to a nearby trash bin he had recently emptied, he tried to appear busy while eavesdropping on the conversation. 

"...and I simply don't know what I'm going to do! I haven't had a good idea for an episode for days. I haven't drawn anything at all today!"

Wally cleared his throat. Henry and Joey both glanced in his direction. 

"Well, I guess you could say that..."

Joey tensed up, sensing what was at the end of this sentence.

"...the only thing that Joey Drew today, was a blank!"

Henry had to grab Joey's arm to prevent him from running up to the young upstart. He beamed at them, seemingly unaware that his pun was not receiving the reaction he may have intended. 

"What was that?!"

Wally froze, and reluctantly turned at the sound of Sammy's approaching footsteps. Apparently his short-lived discussion with the musicians did not go well. 

"Just a few days into your new job and you're already making fun of your boss? And you've already emptied that! Were you spying on them?"

Wally glanced nervously at Henry for help. Henry glanced at Joey, but Joey was still busy glaring at Wally. 

"H-hey man I didn't mean anything by it I just thought it'd...lighten the mood?" He pointed at the light above them, grinning feebly. 

This was apparently the wrong thing to say.

Sammy evidently did not appreciate puns. 

"That's it! Go get your keys! You're done for today!"

Joey walked up to Sammy and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Excuse me Sammy, but last time I checked you weren't the boss here."

Sammy shook off his superior's hand, glaring at Wally. 

"W-well um...I wouldn't be able to I might have er...l-lost my keys..."

"AGAIN?!" Joey and Sammy shouted in unision, scaring the young employee farther into the corner he was already backing into. 

Henry decided to act. He calmly walked up, gently grabbed Wally's arm, and led him away from the fuming duo, who looked as if steam might come out of their ears. 

\----- 

"What was all that?"

Henry had brought Wally into one of the break rooms. The small room contained nothing except a desk, chair, and a small radio, but it was the perfect spot to have short and hushed conversations. 

"Hey calm down, I was just making a joke! That's what you do when someone's worried, you make them...not worried."

Henry sighed and sat down on the chair. "Alright, you're new so I'll make this point _very_ clear. If you want to make jokes, then telling them to Sammy, or Joey...it's going to get you in trouble. They've worked here a very long time, it gets stressful after a while."

Wally pouted. "What's so stressful about drawin' cartoons all day? Have you seen Bendy? He's adorable!"

"Yes I've seen Bendy, I've drawn Bendy a million times just _listen,_ if anything just...stay away from Sammy. I think being in the studio too long is starting to get to him.

Wally seemed to consider this for a moment before slowly nodding. He still seemed oddly shaken by all the shouting.

Henry stood up and opened the door for him. As he passed Wally, he quickly leaned over and whispered.

"By the way...I'm stealing your jokes for the show."

Henry could have sworn some of the old lightbulbs just got changed, as Wally's smile was so bright it seemed to light up the entire hallway.

\----- 

"I regret every decision I've ever made."

"I'm sure you do, Joey."

"He's just so... _annoying"_

"Not to me, but sure, have your opinion."

"I don't think he'll ever get past janitor."

Henry glanced up from the storyboards he was sketching. He mostly didn't mind when Joey bothered him while he was drawing but this seemed to be a serious matter. 

"Well then why did you hire him as an animator? "

"Because he's young! We needed someone new around here, but his art talents just weren't what we needed. He was the only one who seemed genuinely excited to work here, no matter what position he got!"

"And why do you think that is?"

Joey seemed to spend a while considering it.

"Maybe it's because Bendy is so amazing that no one can handle the thought of having the honor of drawing him?"

"Okay first of all that seemed a bit obsessive. I think we should talk about that later. And secondly...look around you."

Joey looked. The room they were in contained a lot of Bendy merchandise. Several cutouts were strewn across the room, posters were hung all over the walls, and the shelves were filled with things like dolls, and their newest product: Bendy Brand Bacon Soup. 

"Now what do you see?"

"I see the most handsome little devil in town, that's what I see."

Henry sighed. "Joey...do we really need all this?"

"What do you mean?"

Henry slowly stood up. He walked over to a wall, and gestured wildly at it. 

"It's things like this that drive people away! They walk in here and all they see is a waste of money! Did you really need to buy 50 copies each of the same five posters?"

"Yes! Those were our most popular ones!"

"Did you really have to hang five of them up right next to each other?"

"Er well..."

"And what about this? Bacon Soup? I don't think it's just me, but that doesn't sound very appetizing."

"Hey, it appeared in that one episode that one time."

" _One time,_ Joey. And what about the stands? And the stickers? Do we really need to see Bendy everywherewe go?"

Joey mumbled something to himself and whipped out a notepad from his pocket. He hastily scribbled something down on it. This was not unusual, and Henry simply waited for him to be finished. 

But while he was still writing, Joey simply walked off down the hall. Henry had half a mind to chase after him, but stopped when Wally poked his head in the doorframe.

"Um...Henry? Do you have a minute?"

Henry sighed and opened a drawer on the desk.

"Looking for these?"

"My keys! Where did you find them?"

"In the trash, which is where they always end up."

Sammy walked by at this exact moment, and decided that this was the best time for a sarcastic remark. He was feeling unusually grumpy today, why not?

"Ah yes, lost your keys again have you? Maybe we should simply glue them to your hand so you don't forget. Then they won't end up in the trash, like you."

"Oh yeah?"

Wally's tone attracted Henry's attention. He sounded...mad.

"Well...w-well...your glasses make you look like a nerd!"

Sammy gasped dramatically, and nearly dropped the papers he was holding. "Look like a 'nerd'! Oh my, however will I recover from this one?"

Henry noticed the odd way of speaking that Sammy adopted when he was about to start something. To avoid an argument, Henry simply hummed a few bars of a tune he made up on the spot.

Sammy stiffened, listening closely. Wally looked back and forth between the two, confusion etched all over his face. 

Suddenly, Sammy shouted, the sudden noise making Wally flinch.

"Henry! You're a genius! Ah, then I can use these lyrics...and it would sound great as a whistle as well...yes yes it all fits!"

Sammy walked down the hall, mumbling to himself and sketching quickly on a piece of paper from his pile.

Wally stared at Henry in awe. "How did you do that?"

Henry winked. "You learn a few things around here after a while."

\----- 

"No no, you're doing it all wrong! It's supposed to sound chipper and happy! What do you think "The Lighter Side Of Hell" means?!"

The orchestra mumbled their usual complaints, and started again. By themselves, the instruments sounded sad. But when put together, they made an interesting piece. 

Henry and Joey were sitting in a nearby room, watching the proceedings. Wally had come in a minute or two later, and seemed transfixed by the orchestra performing the music that would appear in the cartoon. After a quick glare from Henry, Joey had allowed him to stay. 

As always, Wally seemd nervous whenever Sammy started yelling, but Henry thought he seemed to be getting used to his behavior quickly, considering this was only his second week working for the studio. 

As they started up the song, Henry glanced over at Wally.

"So, what do you think?"

He seemed surprised Henry was asking his opinion. After a nervous glance at Joey, he quickly cleared his throat.

"Well...the way Sammy handles things sure is er...interesting." An agreeing grunt from Joey seemee to make Wally more confident.

"But...wouldn't this song sound better if he changed the last few notes?"

The orchestra stopped in the way a band stops when it hasn't actually been told to stop. Sammy slowly turned towards Wally. 

"Are you saying you know more about song-writing than I do? This is a v-"

"A very delicate song-making process," Henry cut in. "Yes, we know."

Sammy stomped over to Wally, conductors baton still gripped tightly in his hand. He roughly grabbed him by the arm and drug him over to one of the many stands that held up the sheet music.

"So then, Wally, how should I change this, hm?"

Henry started to get up to do something about this, Wally almost looked like he was going to cry, but Joey slowly lowered him back into his seat. He seemed interested in the changes Wally had come up with.

The young janitor looked down at the sheet music nervously. He didn't know how to read it, but he could figure out the basics. 

"Well uh...wh-what if you just um...kind of..."

"Spit it out, kid!"

This shout seemed the have the opposite effect Sammy wanted, as Wally nervously clammed up and took a step back.

Even Joey couldn't stop him now. Henry quickly walked over to the pair, the orchestra watching on with interest.

Pushing Sammy out of the way, Henry gently brought Wally back up to the music sheet.

"You said the last few notes right? Not much of a change there...want to give it a try?"

Wally slowly nodded and looked back down at the sheet music. There were several different sets for each instrument. 

The process was slow. Joey had all the musicians go through the last few bars multiple times. Henry provided support, and some advice when Wally got stuck. The end result sounded much better. 

Sammy was standing off to the side, grumbling. "So the kid fixes a few notes for each instrument, so what? You couldn't write lyrics."

Wally walked off in a huff. Joey quietly told the band to keep the changes. 

The next day, Henry found some pieces of paper that looked like they had fallen out of the trash. They had song lyrics written on them.

\----- 

"So, it's been what, a month? What do you think of the kid now?"

Joey looked across the room. Wally was happily chatting with a few other crew members. He seemed at ease, his keys jangling softly from his belt.

"...I think he's going to enjoy working here."


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wally and Henry become Best Buds (as if they weren't already), Sammy gets a sick burn, and Joey is actually cool. What more could you want in a chapter?

Several months had passed since Wally had been hired in the studio, and things had certainly gotten more interesting since then. Sammy seemed more grumpy, as did Joey, but then again that was what they were like most of the time anyway. 

There were some days where you could hear Sammy loudly arguing with anyone who happened to come near. Sometimes it was Joey and sometimes it wasnt, but whoever it was, these arguments always had the same topic: Wally.

Being a janitor was pretty bad by itself. Some people looked down on Wally simply because of his position, no matter how hard he tried to become friends with everyone and stay postive, it didn't stop the mutters whenever he came near.

Being clumsy _and_ a janitor certainly didn't help matters. It was no longer uncommon to be interupted from your thoughts or drawings by the sound of a trash can falling, or someone trpiping over a broom. 

Some days, Wally was good at ignoring Sammy, along with the others. Today was not one of those days. 

Sammy was in at bad mood anyway. He couldn't get the melody to a new song just right, and his obsession with perfection was starting to get to him. It just so happened that Wally was walking by when Sammy was loudly complaining about him to Joey. 

Henry, who was seated at his desk a few rooms away, could hear everything whether he wanted to or not. A little while after the shouting started again, Wally poked his head into the room that Henry called his office. 

It wasn't really a room, just a little section of hallway. But Henry liked it there, and so did Wally. He would have picked the same spot for his desk if he had become an animator instead of a janitor. 

"...Hey Henry? You busy?"

"Yeah. What do you need?"

"Well I er...was just wondering if I could um...just stick around here for a bit. Sammy and Joey are at it again, and I don't want to be nearby when they stop."

Henry said nothing, just simply nodded. Wally figured the fact that he didn't throw him out when he got nearer meant he was allowed to stay. 

"What are ya drawing?"

"...Just a storyboard for the next episode."

Wally gazed in awe as Henry drew. The characters seemed to come to life on the page. Just a few simple sketches, and an entire scene was laid out before him.

"That's so cool! I wish I could do that."

"Who says you can't?"

"Just Joey. And Sammy. And everyone else."

"Wally, if you let everyone else decide what you can and can't do, you'll never get anywhere. Here hold on just a moment..."

Henry reached down to the shelf below his desk and pulled out some spare pens and paper. Shifting his chair to the side, he gave the young janitor enough room to draw on. 

"Practice makes perfect yknow. Why not give it a try?"

Wally grinned excitedly and got to work straight away. He occasionally glanced at what Henry was doing, and both worked together in comfortable silence, only occasionally broken by a stray shout from across the studio. 

After several minutes, Wally jumped up and held his drawing before him.

"So! What do you think!"

Henry could immediately see the potential in the piece. The characters were on-model enough to make Joey happy with it, which was saying something. It never ceased to amaze Henry that Joey could pass up on hiring Wally as an animator. Then again, he was even more of a perfectionist than Sammy.

"It looks great Wally, but would you mind a bit of advice?"

Wally's face fell, but he nodded anyway.

"Alright, here look..."

Henry gently took the paper Wally was still holding up and flattened it against the desk. 

"You see here? The pose is just a bit too stiff. When you're doing cartoons like this, you really want to emphasize the emotions the characters are feeling. Body language does a lot for that. Here look..."

For the next several minutes, Henry taught Wally how to improve his drawing talents. The younger artist looked on in wonder as Henry easily explained how to do things he had struggled with for years. They were both so enamored with the process, that neither noticed the lack of shouting. 

" _What_ are you _doing_ Wally?!"

Wally stood up quickly, knocking over the nearby inkwell the pair had recently been using. Muttering apologizes to Henry under his breath, he tried in vain to clean some of it up, but only succeeded in spreading the mess all over himself. 

Sammy stomped over to the two, and grabbed Wally roughly by the collar of his shirt. 

"You were supposed to sweep the recording booth ten minutes ago! What do you think we pay you for?!"

" _You_ don't pay him _anything,_ Sammy. You aren't the boss here."

Henry pulled the two apart, and stood in front of the enraged music director, straying his attention away from the cowering janitor that had backed himself into the corner.

"I may not be, but I have certain... _connections._ Just wait, sooner or later, that kid is leaving!"

Sammy stormed away in a huff, most likely going to complain to Joey about how Henry had a "questionable work ethic". He had used the same wording for years, but it never made a difference.

Breathing a quick sigh of relief, Henry turned to Wally, surprised to see that the janitor was sitting with his legs curled up to his face. He could have sworn he saw tears, but maybe it was just a trick of the light.

Henry bent down to sit next to him. "Hey. Are you doin' okay? You don't look so good."

Wally nodded and turned away, seemingly embarrassed about his current situation. 

"Yeah I'm...I'm fine just got a little...shaken up I g-guess..."

Henry held out his hand and gently helped Wally to his feet. 

"Hey don't worry about it, okay? Tell ya what, I bet you're gonna stick around this place much longer than old Sammy. And when he's outta here? We'll celebrate. Sound good?"

Wally nodded, wiping his eyes with his arm. He gave Henry a small sheepish smile, before turning his head again.

"...He was right though. I should er...p-probably go and um...s-sweep the er...recording studio...? Yeah. The...recording studio."

He started to walk away, but hesitated. Turning, he gave Henry a real smile. 

"Hey, thanks...for everything."

And then he turned and jogged away, almost tripping over a recently emptied trash can in the process.

\----- 

"I'm worried about that kid, Joey."

"Yeah me too, Sammy's submitted almost as many complaints for him as he has for you. Wonder what's got him so worked up about a janitor..."

"Who knows, but I'll bet you Wally stays on longer than Sammy does."

"Are you suggesting I'm going to fire Sammy?"

"You have to at _some_ point, right? Just make sure Wally lasts at least one more day than he does."

"Alright it's a deal. But you have to repay me."

"Let me guess, donuts at the place down the street?"

"How did you guess?"

The two animators sat in comfortable silence, both working on their own assignments for the show. A short while later, Henry spoke up again. 

"I don't think he had a very nice home life."

"Who, Wally?"

"Yeah, haven't you noticed? The way he reacts when you and Sammy start shouting at each other, the way he talks down to himself...I'm no fancy psychologist, but I'm willing to bet a month's salary something is going on there."

"And what are we supposed to do about it? We can't adopt the kid...can we?"

"No we can't, why would you even seriously consider that? No, I'm thinking we could do something else..."

\----- 

It must have been Wally's lucky day! Here they were, perfect and not crumpled up character sheets, laid perfectly in the trash, and no one around to notice him stuff the papers in his shirt pocket for later.

He glanced around one more time to be safe. Last time someone caught him taking things from the trash had not ended well for anyone involved. 

Well, there was Henry, no doubt heading towards his desk. No sign of anyone else.

Grinning broadly, Wally quickly grabbed the model sheets, tucking them away safely until he could go somewhere quiet to examine them. 

He walked away humming happily to himself, not even drawing the attention of Sammy, who was grumbling about "tempo" and "rythym".

Just around the corner, Henry turned to Joey and gave him a rare smile. Their plan had worked flawlessly. 

\----- 

"Hey Henry?"

"What is it, Sammy."

"You know that new kid, Jolly?"

"It's Wally."

"Yeah yeah, it's all the same. Haven't you noticed how he's been acting recently?"

"Well golly Sammy, I'm completely in the dark here. Why don't you enlighten me, like you love to do."

A strange sound drew Sammy's attention for a second. It sounded like muffled laughter. He shrugged it off, and continued.

"I think we should fire him."

"No surprise there...Have any evidence this time around?"

"In fact, I do. At precisely 2:15pm yesterday afternoon, I caught a glimpse of Wally walking away from a recently emptied trash recepticle seeming oddly happy. Further examination showed that he had apparently stolen some very important accidentally discarded papers from Mr. Drew! Is that enough evidence for you?"

"No, it's not."

"What?! And why not?"

"Because evidence would mean if you brought it to Joey he'd actually want to fire the kid."

"And what makes you think this wouldn't accomplish this task, hm?"

"Firstly, please stop talking like that."

Sammy pouted, and Henry continued.

"Secondly, Joey wouldn't want to fire Wally because of this because Joey was the one who left the papers for the kid to find in the first place."

"That's preposterous! Why would Mr. Drew ever do stomething like that?"

"I don't know, maybe because he knows how much you keep talking down about him and decided to brighten his day like a decent person would?"

"Then why not simply give the papers to him in the first place?"

"Because he knew he wouldn't accept them! Would you?"

"Well...no. Because that is not my area of expertise!"

"Well maybe you should work on it, Beethoven. Now can you leave me be? You're interupting the very delicate animation-making process."

More muffled laughter, followed by quick footsteps leading away from the spot where Henry and Sammy were talking. Sammy picked up on the noise, and ran off to go investigate. 

Henry turned back to his work. No music director was going to upset Wally. Not even the army kicking down the door would get Henry to abandon him, not when Wally had expirenced so much of that already. You could bet a whole box of donuts on that.


	3. Chaper Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long to write! But hey, I made a tumblr blog with one of my friends for this AU and several others we have! @sammy-and-the-au-Machine go check it out if you want!
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

_Sheep, sheep sheep, it's time for sleep! Rest your head, it's time for bed!_

Sammy frowned as he mumbled the tune to himself. Something about the rythym was off. He'd been trying for weeks to figure out what was wrong, and it was starting to seriously bother him. 

It wasn't uncommon nowadays to see Sammy running down a hall, sheet music in hand while humming something to himself. He seemed to be busier than ever, and he seemed to enjoy taking his annoyance out on other people. 

Then one day, something changed that. 

\----- 

"Right this way, I'll give you the tour! My name's Wally!"

"Oh, thank you Wally! My name is S-"

" _WALLY!"_

All of the nearby crew instantly tried to run out of the way as Sammy came running down the hall towards the pair that had just turned the corner. Wally almost hid behind the new recruit he was supposed to be showing around. But he had promised Henry he'd try to stand up for himself more...

_"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY MUSIC?!"_

Forget that, he's getting outta there. 

But before Wally could sprint in the other direction, he felt a hand roughly grab the back of his shirt and spin him around, knocking the hat off of his head. 

Sammy was definitley _not_ happy. 

"How do you explain this?! You're supposed to be this he janitor and yet you got ink all over m-"

Sammy froze. Who was this? Why was she here? What did Wally do this time?

"And who might this be, Collie?"

The person in question stepped forward and cleared her throat. 

"My name happens to be Susie. You must be the music director I've heard so much about."

Sammy didn't hear a word she said. Her voice...it was perfect. Just the kind they needed for...

"Alice!"

"Er...excuse me?"

"You must be the new voice actor for Alice!"

"Um well I'm not _new,_ exactly but yeah. Yeah, I am. What's your name?"

Sammy hastily and proudly introduced himself, forgetting for the time being that he was supposed to be mad at Wally, who was sneaking away down the hall. 

Susie glanced his direction nervously every once in a while, but otherwise she seemed to be wanting to distract Sammy long enough for him to forgo yelling at Wally again. She knew the look she saw on his face, one she knew all too well, and she couldn't let Sammy do that again. 

They spent the next few minutes chatting about music and animations and the like. Wally peeked around the corner at the two of them in awe. Did Sammy actually just...befriend someone?

Joey's appearance forced the small party to dissipate, and Wally continued his quick tour of the new recording facilities, glancing back at Sammy in amazement. 

\----- 

"It's amazing, I don't know how Joey found her but her voice is perfect!"

"She's actually been working here for a while, she does a lot of voices."

"Yes, but she does small things. Didn't she voice that talking chair we had last week?"

"Yeah, that would be her."

"Amazing."

Henry was forced to make polite conversation with Sammy during his lunch break. He had been bragging about how he got to work with Susie for the past few days, and it was getting impossible to avoid him. 

"So how's that new song coming along, eh?"

"Oh, it's horrible. Nothing seems to be fitting together right."

"Why not ask your new friend about it?"

"I would, but that kid, Folly, got ink all over my sheet music the other day! How could he be so clumsy? He's the janitor for crying out loud."

"Maybe what you should be asking is why we have all these random inkwells lying around."

"Hm...true..."

Wally poked his head around the corner. He froze for a second at the sight of Sammy, but the music director seemed oddly calm. 

"Er...Hey, Henry? You got a minute?"

"Yeah sure Wally, what's going on?"

"So um...I uh...I..."

Sammy seemed on the verge of saying something, but Henry put a hand on his arm and turned calmly to fully face the young janitor.

"Yes?"

Wally cleared his throat and stepped fully into the room. Only then did Henry notice the papers in his arms.

"...I've been practicing and..."

Henry held his hand above the papers. Wally nodded, giving Henry permission to grab one. He pulled the top paper off the stack and glanced at it. He could feel Sammy looking curiously over his shoulder.

Henry nearly dropped the paper. It was a perfect storyboard, depicting Boris and Bendy having a heated discussion about the logic of pranking an angel, of all people. 

"Wally, this is amazing! We have to show this to Joey!"

Wally grinned broadly, and silently handed Sammy a piece of paper. Sammy snatched it out of his hand, and looked down. 

"Is this...sheet music?"

"Y-Yeah I uh...kinda felt bad about knocking over that inkwell the other day, so I tried to fix the song. It was kind of badly damaged but...I did my best."

Sammy stared at the paper, shocked. It was at perfect recreation, right down to the shortest note. 

He turned the paper over. 

"What is this?!"

Wally almost looked like he wanted to grab the paper back. Instead, he uncomfortably shifted the stack of papers in his arms and cleared his throat.

"Um that's just...a little thing I was working on, don't worry about i-"

"Don't worry about it?!" Sammy jumped up from his seat, prompting Wally to take a quick step back. "This is genius! The rhyme, the melody, the..."

Sammy seemed to realize what he had been saying. He coughed, and discreetly shoved the paper in his pocket.

"...It's alright I suppose."

Henry couldn't imagine Wally's smile could get much wider. He humbly looked down, happy tears prickling the corners of his eyes.

Henry stood up and placed his hand on the young janitor's shoulder. 

"I wasn't kidding earlier, let's go see Joey."

\----- 

"Hey, Susie. Is that a new necklace?"

Susie turned at the sound of Sammy's voice. She seemed flattered that he noticed.

"Yeah, actually that nice fellow Norman gave it to me. Do you like it?"

The necklace in question was simple, but cute. A small circle, with horns and a halo attached.

"It's nice..."

This was a very big compliment coming from Sammy, and Susie smiled at him before returning to the script she was studying. 

The door to the small office swung open, Norman walking in and dropping a stack of papers on the desk. 

"Hey, did y'all hear the news 'bout that kid Wally?"

Sammy folded his arms arms rolled his eyes. "Most likely nothing good. What has he done this time?"

Norman's eyes were wide as he spoke, attracting Susie's attention.

"They say that Henry fella took 'im down ta see Joey 'bout gettin a promotion and guess what! That little scamp turns it down!"

"What?" Susie turned in her chair. "But he really deserves a promotion, he's so sweet to everyone...why'd he turn it down? Do you know?"

Norman shook his head. "Said he didn' want t' impose on the other animators here. Says he's gotten used to doin' all the cleanin', can't imagine himself doin' anything else now."

"That's ridiculous!" Sammy seemed shocked at his own outburst, but continued. "The kid gets an offer for a promotion and he has the audacity to deny it? What was he thinking?"

Susie looked down at her lap. "I can kind of see where he's coming from, actually. I can't imagine Wally sitting behind a desk all day. It's not really his thing, y'know?"

Sammy sighed. "Honestly, that kid never ceases to amaze me."

"Oh, you're sayin' that like the kid has somethin' t' prove, Sammy. Sure you're not gettin' soft on 'im?"

"Of course not! Honestly Norman, the fact you'd even suggest such a thing..."

"Then why'd ya sound like he shoulda taken that promotion?"

Sammy hesitated. The two looked at him curiously, and he eventually gave in.

"...Look, it's not much, just...The kid gave me a page of sheet music the other day and-"

"Ooh he did?" Susie was practically jumping in her seat. "Let's see it!"

Sammy grumbled the entire time he pulled the crumpled up piece of paper out of his pocket. He slammed it on the desk and backed away.

Susie and Norman looked at the music with interest. Norman began humming the tune, and Susie tried to sing the words under her breath.

"Wally wrote this? That's amazing! Why wouldn't he want to show this to everyone? Has Joey seen it?"

"No and he never will either!" Sammy snapped, snatching the page off the table. "It's just a doodle and nothing more"

Susie huffed her dissaproval and grabbed her script before leaving the room. Norman simply shook his head before sitting down to work. 

Sammy slouched off to his office, carefully pulling out the sheet music again. 

"... _Sheep, sheep sheep, it's time for sleep...rest your head...it's time for bed~..._ "


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is Wally finally gonna get a break from all the stuff he's been through recently?
> 
> Nah but he'll probably get like. A fluffy sweater or something I dunno

"...Wally...?"

Wally quickly sat upright, nearly knocking everything off of the desk he was leaning on. He stood up, ruffling the back of his hair like he always did when he was nervous. 

"...Were you sleeping here?"

"W-Well uh Joey it's not what it looks like I...I can explain-"

"It looked like you were sleeping here."

"...Yeah, I was..."

"But _why?"_

Wally looked at the ground, shuffling his feet. His next words were almost inaudible.

"...'Cause home has been kinda rough lately and I er...d-didn't want to go back yet...?"

Joey ran his hands down his face. Henry had told him about the suspicions he had about Wally's home life, but it couldn't be that bad, right?

Sighing, Joey grabbed Wally's shoulder, trying to ignore the obvious flinch. 

"...This desk isn't that comfortable, you can take my office."

"Wait...really?"

The optimism in his voice made Joey hesitate.

"Well...yeah. Henry would have my head if he found out I didn't do anything, yknow?"

Wally almost skipped all the way down the hall. As Joey opened the door, Wally instantly ran inside, sitting down gratefully at the plush chair that Joey kept around. Wally was spinning in the chair, and laughing, until he realized who he was talking to.

"Oh uh it's um...it's nice in here...? Thanks Joey!"

Joey chuckled, closing the door behind him as he turned to leave. "Eh, it's no problem. Get comfy, but not _too_ comfy, I'm going to need this office back in the morning."

Wally waved happily as the door closed, almost giddy at the prospect of having somewhere soft to sleep. 

Joey stood outside the door for a while. Surely this old worn out studio couldn't be better than an actual house, right? 

He'd have to talk to Henry about this.

\----- 

"Hey Henry! Hey, glad I could catch you, wait up!"

Joey ran towards his old colleague, who had just been walking towards the music department. 

"What is it?"

"Hey, you've got a big house right?"

"Well...I wouldn't say big but yeah I guess. Why?"

"That kid, Wally? Spent the night in my office last night."

"What? Why?"

"Said somethin' about his home life being rough? Something like that. He almost slept at your desk, but I caught him while I was shutting stuff down last night."

"Oh, I didn't know, where is he?"

"Making his rounds again, you might see him, but that's not what I wanted to tell you."

It was only then that Henry noticed the envelope in his boss' hand. Joey held it out, and he took it.

"That's a 30% bonus on your current pay. You wouldn't mind letting the kid stay at your house for a few days, would you?"

Henry stared at the envelope in amazement. Thirty percent? That was actually pretty generous. Of course, Henry would let Wally stick around without a bonus, but Joey didn't need to know that. 

"Yeah, of course, but uh...Joey? Where did you fit this into the budget?"

Joey started walking backwards down the hall, gesturing wildly as he left. "That's not important! Just, take care of him? Don't worry about the money! Yeah!"

Henry probably would have stayed in that spot, staring at the money in his hand for quite a while, had a shout from Sammy not reminded him where he was going.

"Henry! You're late! Do you have the storyboards or wh-...Well well well, what do we have here? Did you get a promotion or what?"

Henry quickly pocketed the envelope. "Nothing you need to know about, Sammy. Don't worry 'bout it."

Sammy huffed, and followed him to the music department. 

\----- 

"He what?!" 

"Spent the night in Joey's office, yeah."

"Oh that's so awful...Norman, what can we do?"

"Nothin' we can do 'bout it Suz. Just leave it be, Joey'll take care of it."

"But...poor Wally, there's got to be _something_ we could do!"

"Don't bother yourself," Sammy declared, walking into the recording booth where Susie and Norman were having their conversation. He dropped a small stack of papers on the nearby stand, and turned to face the pair.

"I heard _Henry_ got and big bonus from Joey to have the kid stay at his house."

"Oh, that's wonderful! Wally will like it there, Henry is so kind to help him! But I still wish I could do something..."

"Hey Suz, don' worry, see? Joey's got it all covered. But uh...just wonderin' Sam...where in the budget does it say we can just up and give tons a' money t' someone?"

Sammy chuckled bitterly. "Oh, it doesn't say that anywhere. Where Joey gets all this money from, I have no ide-"

Susie suddenly slammed her hand on the desk she was sitting at, attracting Sammy and Norman's attention.

"I can't believe I forgot! I can knit!"

"Oh you can? My my, how interesting..."

"Oh do be quiet, Sammy. But my point is, I can make things! I can make something for Wally to take back home!"

"Aw Suz, that's nice a' ya. Better write it on your hand, don' wanna forget that."

Susie stood up and started rustling the papers on the desk in front of her. "That's a great idea Norman! Have you seen my pen...?"

\----- 

"...What?!"

"Now don't get too excited just yet, it can only be for a few days but I do have enough room for you t-"

Henry's sentence was cut short as Wally suddenly rushed forward and gave him the most sincere hug he had ever received. 

"Thank you so much Henry! Golly, that's so nice I can't believe...you would really...r-really..."

Henry grabbed the young janitor by his shoulders and pulled him back, allowing him to wipe the tears that had suddenly appeared on his face. 

"Hey, calm down, we haven't even gotten to the end of the work day yet!"

Wally nodded, laughing through his tears. "Gosh Henry, you just...you'd really do that for me?"

"'Course I would, why wouldn't I? Come on, I think you deserve to take a break for a bit. I know you don't want to do it full-time but...Want to help with the next few storyboards?"

Wally nodded eagerly, still trying desperately to wipe his face before anyone saw. 

\----- 

"Alright, here we are!"

Henry unlocked the door, and swung it open. Wally heistantly stepped inside, obviously anxious at being in someone else's house. 

It was a relatively tidy space, with the obvious appearance that Henry had to have had a pet at one point.

"Oh wow, it's so...clean!"

"Heh, won't be that way for long."

"What do you me-"

Wally's sentence was cut off by the sound of paws clicking on a hardwood floor. Suddenly, to Wally's great delight, a small group of dogs came rushing in from the next room, all eagerly fighting to get Henry's attention. 

"Woah I didn't know you had dogs! How many are there?!"

Henry knelt down to attempt to pet all of them at once. "Oh, not too many just er...eight. I used to have one but er...she had puppies and well I just...couldn't bear to let them go."

"I can see why!" Wally exclaimed, dropping his bags and reaching out to pet the nearest dog. "What are their names?"

Henry whistled, and the dogs eagerly lined up. He grabbed a bag of dog treats near the door, tossing one to each dog as he called out their names. 

"This one is Carly, then we have Toby, Connie, Charlie, Patty, Robbie, Kaite, and Steve."

Wally gaped in amazement at the last dog, easily the smallest of the bunch. He knelt down next to him, and gently pet his head.

"I love Steve."

"Yup. He's the smallest, the most energetic, and the most dumb, but I love him anyways."

Wally hugged the dog to his chest, happy tears shining in his eyes. " _I love Steve._ "

"Woah calm down there, we better let 'em head outside."

"Yeah...yeah okay. Goodbye Steve!"

Wally gently set the puppy on the ground, which immediately tried to jump back onto his lap.

"Henry your dogs are beautiful."

"Heh, you won't be thinking that halfway through the week, but thanks. You'll be taking the couch, you don't mind being buried in a pile of dogs do you?"

"I want nothing more than to be able to pet these dogs forever."

Henry smiled as he left the room. "Good to know."

\----- 

"Guys, guys, guys, look! I did it!"

Susie eagerly held up the sweater she had been working on throughout the week. Norman, Sammy, and Henry, who had all been working on the music for the next few episodes, leaned in for a closer work. 

It was a very soft and well-made sweater, depicting a picture of a sweeping broom on the front, and a picture of Boris, Wally's favorite character, on the back.

"Wow Susie, this is really well done. You should be proud!"

Susie hugged the sweater to her chest, blushing slightly at the compliment. "Gee, thanks Henry! I am proud of it!"

Sammy looked back at his sheet music. "Eh, it's alright I suppose."

Norman elbowed Sammy, causing him to misplace a note he was drawing, before turning to Susie. 

"It looks great Suz, when are ya plannin' t' give it to 'im?"

"Oh, I'm thinking maybe after he gets done with work today. You really think he'll like it?"

"'Course he will, why wouldn' he?"

"Oh I don't know...I'm just getting all nervous now." Susie sat down on a nearby chair, turning towards the group. 

"So, how's Wally been, Henry?"

"Oh, the kid's doing fine. Certainly gets along with my dogs OK."

"Wait, you have dogs?"

"Yes, not everyone has cats, Sammy."

Sammy huffed and turned back to his paper. "At least my cats are more well-mannered than your _dogs."_

Henry rolled his eyes. The door opened, and Wally stepped in, holding his broom. Susie jumped up and quickly hid the sweater behind her back. 

"Hey Wally, how are you doing?"

Wally's face lit up. "Oh I'm doing great Henry! Say, you haven't seen my keys have you?"

Sammy groaned loudly, earning him another elbow in his side from Norman. "Well, where'd ya last see 'im?"

"Er...I uh...don't know...?"

Sammy looked ready to say something until Henry stood up. 

"Well, let's go look around, then. They can't have gone that far."

\----- 

"I'm starting to regret taking that bit out of our budget," Joey said, trying to get the tiniest bit of ink out of the last pen he had. "Do you think Henry would have done it for free?"

"Well it's a bit too late to go back now, isn't it?" Sammy's voice sounded especially bitter, as he was trying to tune the banjo in his hands. 

"Yeah I guess so. Say, you haven't seen Henry around recently have you?"

"Last I heard, they were looking for the kid's keys."

"Again?! Maybe we should do something for that."

"Why bother? It's the kid's problem, not ours."

"Yes, but if he can't open the closet to get his cleaning supplies, you won't have a clean studio to work in."

"Hm...true..."

Their attention was drawn by the sound of shrieking coming from the front hall. Joey rushed in, followed a minute later by Sammy, who seemed to be taking his time.

They were greeted by a very confusing scene. Wally was hugging Susie, and to Sammy's utter dismay, he was crying again. Henry was awkwardly holding a light blue sweater in such a way that it wouldn't get wrinkled. Norman was sitting at a nearby desk, wearing earplugs.

"What's going on here?"

"Joey! Oh Joey, look what Susie made me!" Wally hastily grabbed the sweater from Henry and ran over to where Joey and Sammy were standing.

"Susie made this? Wow, good work."

Susie blushed, and Wally ran back to hug her again. 

"I love it! Thank you so much!"

"D'aw, it was nothin', sweetheart."

Wally turned to face everyone in the room. 

"You've all been so nice these past few days...I can't thank you enough!"

"You don't have to," Henry said, walking up to the excited youth. "We're just helping a fellow employee out. No need to repay us."

"But I want to!"

"You can start by giving Joey your pay," Sammy mumbled quietly. "Seeing as how the budget is that bad."

Everyone pretended not to hear, and they all cheerfully said goodbye as Henry and Wally left the studio together. 

They milled about for a little while, chatting about anything that came up. It was calm, until Sammy suddenly turned towards Joey.

"So, does the kid know Henry is getting paid to do this?"

Everyone froze, and an awkward silence stretched on for a minute or two. Joey cleared his throat.

"Well...no. Why should he?"

"Interesting..." Sammy mumbled, looking back at the door Henry and Wally had exited from just a few minutes ago. 

"Very interesting..."


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Have you enjoyed the nice fluff and happiness? 
> 
> Good, because this is where things get interesting...

Morale in the studio had never been higher. Wally could often be found happily chatting with anyone he came across, and the entire building was spotless. Even Sammy had to admit, his office seemed a lot cleaner that he remembered it being. 

Wally had been staying with Henry for about a week and a half now, and the two had formed a close bond. Sometimes Henry brought in storyboards that didn't match his style of drawing Bendy. Sometimes Wally could be found with a new pair of shoes, or a new hat. It wasn't uncommon to see the two talking during breaks. 

All of this even got Joey's attention. Even he could see what a positive influence Wally seemed to be having on the place. Wally got his paycheck one week to find a generous bonus inside. Joey didn't stop getting thank you's for hours. 

Despite all of this, Sammy was still as glum as ever, throwing more and more of his time into his work. Susie and Norman tried often to get him to join them for lunch and the like, but he couldn't be dragged away from his sheet music. 

Even then, the attitude around the studio seemed much more calm than anyone could remember it ever being before. 

And then the army came knocking on the door. Quite literally. 

\----- 

"Well, I'm afraid I can't help you er...gentlemen. We need all the help we can get around here."

"I don't think drawing _cartoons_ all day is a productive use of your employees time, Mr. Drew."

Joey had to keep calm around the representatives that had come to visit. Sure, he knew about the war effort that was going on. They had even started adding "buy bonds!" to the corners of their promotional posters. 

"Well I'm sorry, but you can't just come barging in here asking for more soldiers. We're helping, just last week we aired an episode about-"

"Yes yes, your little _demon_ telling people to help out sure was appreciated. But that's not what I'm here for. I need someone young, someone willing to take orders, someone who doesn't mind getting dirty. You know anyone like that, or are all your staff too soft?"

Joey sighed. Henry was going to kill him. If these people didn't do it first. 

"No no, I...I know someone..."

\----- 

"You _WHAT?!"_

"I had to Henry! They wouldn't back down! I didn't want to, really but..."

"Where is he?"

"Wh...what?"

"Where is Wally?"

"...I let him take the soldiers on a tour around the place. Gave them both a chance to...get to know each other."

Henry took off running down the hall. Joey didn't make an effort to stop him, instead choosing to simply stand there in shock. 

"...Good luck."

\----- 

"Yeah, it was really interesting! They talked about all the cool stuff they do out there! I've got a whole new respect for em now!"

Sammy simply grunted as he listened to Wally ramble. It had been a day or two since the army representatives had nearly broken down the door looking for people. They said they needed a few days to decide who was best fit for the job. 

"Yeah, it was great! Henry even showed up at one point!"

This seemed to catch Sammy's attention.

"...I see. What did you two do?"

"Oh, nothing much. He seemed to be in a hurry, but he and the general got to have a quick chat before we moved on."

"Mhm...Wally?"

"Huh? What?"

Sammy tried his best to look sympathetic. 

"Look...I probably shouldn't tell you this but..."

"What? What is it?"

"No no, I shouldn't...you wouldn't want to hear it..."

"What? You can't just leave it at that! What's going on Sammy?"

"Well...you see...Henry and I were talking the other day and..."

"Yeah?"

Sammy looked Wally in the eyes. "He was talking about having you over and everything...and I don't remember exactly what he said so don't quote me on this...but he said something like...'Having the kid over is great, especially since I'm getting paid to do it!'"

Wally froze. 

"Wait...wh...what...?"

"Yeah I know, it was a bit of a shock for us too. Turns out Joey's been giving him huge bonuses to get you out of everyone's hair. I don't think he's actually been helping you, the way he said it, it sounded like he was only doing it for the money."

Wally actually took a step back in shock. He looked down, trying to process what he heard. 

"What...no...no he wouldn't he...he actually... _liked_ being with me...r-right? He wouldn't do that...would he...?!"

Sammy walked up to Wally and awkwardly patted his shoulder. Wally flinched, his breathing become erratic. 

"Hey, I know how hard this must be for you. Just know we're always here to talk about it, okay? But...be careful around Henry."

Wally slowly nodded, and walked quietly out of the room, trying to hold back tears.

Sammy watched him go, a smile on his face so devilish it would rival that of Bendy himself. 

\----- 

Henry was driving Wally back to his home, just like every other day. What wasn't like every other day, was that instead of chatting up a storm, Wally was quietly gazing out the window, lost in thought. 

The kid had been acting weird all day. Whenever Henry tried to talk to him, he found some thing he had to clean. When he asked if Wally wanted to make some more storyboards, he quickly said he was too busy and rushed off. 

Something was up. 

"...Hey, Wally?"

Wally jumped, and quickly looked over at Henry. If he had been able to take his eyes off the road, maybe he would have spotted the fear in the kid's eyes.

"You seem a bit...tense there pal. What's wrong?"

"...'s nothin' Henry don't...don't worry about it."

This only made Henry more suspicious, but he decided to drop it. He was nervous too. 

Having actual army representatives at the studio the other day likely shook him up a bit. It sure bothered Henry, and he wasn't the one being investigated. 

Sighing, Henry decided to leave the kid alone for the night. He deserved a bit of quiet time before the chaos that tomorrow would bring.

\----- 

"Alright everyone, quiet! These...fine gentlemen here have asked me to bring you all together for this meeting here so...let's hear what they have to say."

Joey stepped down from the podium he had set up in the front hall of the studio. The army general himself had decided to lead this meeting. 

All of the employees of the studio were present, talking anxiously to each other. Susie and Norman were exchanging hushed comments about their coworkers, glancing around nervously. Sammy looked like he was just suffering through another boring meeting, no doubt thinking he was safe from the chopping block. 

Henry and Wally were sitting together. Henry couldn't help glancing at Wally. The young janitor seemed to be panicking, nervously rubbing his hands together and trying to control his breathing.

The army general began his long introduction, and Henry quietly nudged Wally. 

"Hey. Are you okay?"

Wally looked like he was going to say something, then thought better of it. Silently, he shook his head.

"Hey, don't worry about it, you'll be fine."

The sour look he got only added to his confusion. 

"What's your problem been recently? I know you well enough to know when you've got something on your mind."

"That's funny," the sudden icy tone caught Henry's attention. "I thought I knew you well enough to know what you were thinking too. Guess I didn't."

"Wally, what are you talking about?!"

The hushed conversation was starting to draw the attention of some of the nearby employees. Sammy even seemed to be trying to get a better view of the argument.

"Oh, you know what I'm talking about! You were getting paid this whole time! You didn't really care about me...I don't know why I expected any better. You're all the same."

Henry glanced nervously over at Joey, who had taken notice of their conversation. He silently pointed up anxiously at the general, who was beginning to move on to more important matters. 

"Wally, you don't honestly believe that do you? Who told you?"

Wally frowned. Henry hadn't denied it. But then again...

"...It was Sammy wasn't it."

"What?"

"He seems...interested."

Sammy was practically shoving people aside to see what Henry and Wally were doing. Henry and Sammy's eyes met for a just a second, but his expression told him all he needed to know.

"Look, Wally I can explain. I-"

"And now! The list that we have spent so much time organizing..."

"The list of employees who will be drafted to become soldiers."

Dozens of anxious whispers started up almost immediately. Wally ignored Henry, his entire attention focused on the makeshift stage he himself had set up that morning.

The general very dramatically pulled a piece of paper out of a pocket in his jacket. Clearing his throat, he began to list names. 

At first, Henry didn't really know who he was talking about. He had never gotten to know everyone in the entire studio. But glancing behind him, he saw people he recognized, their faces white and covered in tears. It suddenly became very real to him what was happening. 

"...and Wally Franks."

Wally flinched. Joey couldn't have...was everyone he trusted betraying him today?!

Disbelieving gasps sprung up from the crowd, some people even shouting angry comments. Everyone knew Wally. He was just a kid. He couldn't go to war. He just couldn't!

"If anyone has any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate t-"

He couldn't take this. The look of absolute pure fear on Wally's face was unbearable.

Slowly, Henry stood up.

"Yes?"

"I would like to take his place."

Everyone froze. The studio was as quiet as Henry had ever heard it, and he took the moment of stunned silence to enjoy the moment while he could.

"...You what?"

"Wally Franks. I would like to take his place as soldier."

"Henry no!" Joey had leapt up from his seat, ready to run over to his friend. A hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"We can't do anythin' bout it now Joey. He's already made the statement." Norman slowly lowered Joey back into his seat, Joey's look of angry sadness burning a permanent image in Henry's mind. 

Everyone could hear Susie suddenly burst into tears, the nearby employees awkwardly trying to console her.

Wally looked up at Henry, who was staring down the general. Just a minute ago he was accusing him of betraying him and now...

What was happening? 

"Heh. I like your ambition. Why not?"

Angry shouts suddenly erupted all over the room. Henry may not have taken the time to get to know everyone, but everyone knew who he was. No one wanted to let him go.

For just one second, before he was rushed out of the room with everyone else who had just been drafted, Henry looked down at Wally. 

The kid was a mess. His face was covered in tears.

Suddenly, he jumped up and hugged Henry, never wanting to let him go.

"Why are you doing this?! You don't have to I...I-I'll go I can-"

"No." Henry grabbed Wally by the shoulders, pushing him away and forcing the kid to look at him in the eyes. 

"No, you won't go. You can't go. You're too young, you wouldn't make it. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I just let you go off to war."

Wally nodded, trying to stop the fresh flow of tears that threatened to drown him in sadness. 

Henry game him a single, small smile before he was roughly grabbed by the elbow and hurried out of the studio. 

\----- 

The morale in the studio had never been lower. 

The loss of the good people who had been drafted could be felt by all, the pain renewing anytime they sat down to lunch, or for a break. 

Familiar faces were missing from the crowd. It just wasn't right. 

It became an unspoken rule that no one was to touch or move Henry's desk. The old animator who had given himself up for the youngest employee became a hushed legend in the studio. 

Ironically, the only person who was allowed near Henry's desk was Wally, who was tasked once a week with making sure it stayed in perfect condition. 

The change in Wally was the clearest reminder of what had occurred only a few short days ago. The janitor wore a constant expression of blank disbelief, simply going through the motions, refusing to talk to anyone. 

Susie and Norman took it upon themselves to attempt to get the kid back to his old self. Whatever they did didn't seem to be working, there was nothing they could do to help. 

Even Sammy seemed to be quieter than normal. He kept himself from nagging Wally about this or that, only talking to anyone about work. 

A week went by since that day, and the entire time no one had heard a word from Joey. The studio crew were starting to become genuinely concerned. 

The next day, he came to the studio with blueprints in his hand.


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So now that all the excitement is over I wonder how everyone's doing...?

"...You want us to what?"

"It's just like a journal, don't worry! But I've bought several tape recorders for each of you so feel free to talk as long as you want."

"Why on earth would we do this."

"Oh come on Sammy, it's not like I'm asking you to do something hard."

Sammy sighed and accepted the tape recorder being offered to him. Joey had been making a lot of odd requests the past few days. Talking to a tape recorder while he was working didn't seem so bad. 

"Great, while you're at it make sure Wally gets some next time you see him!"

Sammy started to say something, but when he looked up Joey had gone, no doubt sensing the argument that was about to arise.

No one had seen much of Wally recently. The kid seemed to be pouring his heart into his work, spending every second of free time into cleaning even the most obscure parts of the studio. 

Sammy put the tape recorders on his desk and headed out to find the janitor and get this over with. 

Walking through the studio nowadays felt...odd. There were noticeably less people crowding the hallways, and those who were there could often be found whispering to each other. 

"Hey Susie, have you seen Wally anywhere?"

Sammy poked his head into the recording studio where Susie was attempting to record lines. 

_Attempting_ being the key word here.

"Oh...no I haven't, sorry. I was just...just um..."

Sammy sighed and walked fully into the room. Susie was always naturally forgetful, but the distress she had been in recently with losing Henry had made it much worse. Norman and Sammy now spent a great deal of time helping her work. 

"Okay, do you have any lines with you?"

"Lines?"

"You know...a script. Were you recording anything?"

"Oh...oh, yeah I was! Joey gave me this earlier...?" Sammy inhaled sharply as he saw her pull a tape recorder out of her bag. 

"Why did you get...what did you say?"

Susie looked down at the tape recorder for a solid minute before simply shrugging her shoulders.

"...Right. Okay, well if you see Wally let him know I'm looking for him."

Susie nodded, still staring at the tape recorder as Sammy quickly left. 

\----- 

"Hey Sammy, what're ya up to?"

"Oh just looking for that kid again. You haven't seen him have you?"

"Can't say I have, sorry. What do ya need 'im for?"

"Ugh, Joey's giving everyone these weird recorders and telling us all to say something for them."

"Hm. Do they look like this?"

"Wh- Norman why do you have one?"

Norman shrugged. "Guess Joey thought my job was important 'nough to get one I suppose."

Sammy sighed, pushing his glasses farther up his face. "Look just...tell me if you see the kid."

"I see the kid."

"Very funny Norman."

"...Sammy turn around."

Sammy quickly spun on the spot, and saw Wally carefully polishing the instruments. 

"Wally!"

Wally jumped, sending a violin crashing to the ground. He winced, and hastily picked it up and scanned for any damage.

Sammy ran over and snatched the violin from his hands. He was about to say something until he noticed the tired expression on the kid's face.

Sighing, Sammy simply reached into his pocket and pulled out a small tape recorder.

"...Joey wanted you to have this. You're supposed to use it like a journal I guess. But only for work things."

Wally hesitantly reached out and accepted the recorder. He fiddled with the buttons for a bit until suddenly the sound of Joey's voice filled the room. 

" _Yeah, says right here I'm going to need some from each of the key employees here. Huh? Yeah...Yeah I suppose some from Henry would have been nice...But we can't exactly get some now can we? Have to make do with what we have..._ " Click. 

" _I don't know what to do about those two. They won't stop arguing! ...Hm? Make sure it's mentioned? Why would I...Oh. Oh, I see don't worry, I'll handle it._ " Click. 

" _These blueprints are fantastic! I can even order most of these pieces from local engineering shops! It...could actually...work! Isn't that amazing?! I can't wait until-_ " Click.

" _Oh yeah, the kid's a great janitor, always makes sure the place is spotless. Huh? Oh no, he won't leave. Even if that does happen, as long as here is better than home, he'll stick around...Right?_ " Click. 

The three stood in stunned silence. Was Joey aware he was being recorded? Who was he talking to?

Wally stared at the tape in his hand in shock. He was mentioned. More than once. He couldn't tell why but...this felt like a bad thing. 

Sammy finally regained his senses, storming out of the room in a huff. Norman watched him leave. 

"...You okay kid? You're lookin' like you just saw a ghost."

Slowly, Wally nodded. He'd have to get a different recorder, he wasn't deleting that any time soon. 

\----- 

"...Sure, it's been hard without Henry around. But I think everyone's startin' to accept it. Even me...But hey. Moping isn't going to get all this ink cleaned up! Don't even know where Joey gets it all honesty..."

Wally hit the button on his tape recorder, and shoved it in the closet. Sighing, he started once again to try mopping up all the ink that seemed to endlessly drip from Joey's office. 

The man had started some serious renovations, moving several animators out of their shared office to make room for some project he was working on.

He said it would take a few years to possibly get it fully finished, but the thing was already a big inconvenience to most, if not all, of the people working here. Aside from Joey, of course. 

It had been a tough few weeks, but you could tell the employees in the studio were starting to accept and work around it. 

Animations were getting done slightly faster to make up for lack of animators. More casual conversations were occurring than hushed whispers. 

People were learning to hide their sadness with jokes. 

\----- 

"Hey Sammy! Long time no see! What're ya doin' all cooped up in here?"

"Not now Wally, I'm trying to get this song done..."

"Aw cmon, you've been at it all week. Come take a break. Norman and Susie are already down in the break room. Want to join?"

Sighing, Sammy set down his pen. Wally had already interupted his train of thought, and expierence showed he wasn't going to leave until he got a yes. 

"...Fine. Fine, I'm coming."

Wally smiled and headed out, with Sammy not far behind. 

The turned the corner to head into the break room when they bumped into Susie and Norman. They were both standing just outside the doorway, gaping in shock at the room. 

Construction workers were all over the place, cutting into the walls and installing little stands all over the room. Joey stood in the middle of the commotion, nodding his approval. 

Sammy stormed in and pulled Joey out of the room and back towards the group.

"What are you doing? What on earth is all this?!"

Joey simply smiled at them. "Isn't is great? Just getting some renovations done in preparation of our big project!"

"But Joey! You said it wasn't gonna be done for a few more years at least!"

"Ah yes but you see Wally, it never hurts to be prepared!"

And with that, Joey simply walked off. 

The four stood looking at all the construction in disbelief. They probably would have stayed like that for a while, had Norman not cleared his throat.

"Well, this is a bummer. Who wants to come to my place? 'S not that far. Joey wouldn't mind."

Without looking away, the others nodded. 

\----- 

"Woah! Your house is neat!"

Norman chuckled. "Thanks kid. Oh, you're gonna love this, watch."

Curious, Wally looked on as Norman put his hands to his mouth and whistled.

The tell-tale sound of paws on hardwood floors made Wally freeze. A large slow dog came bounding into the room, instantly going to sniff Susie, who clapped her hands in delight. 

"Aw Norman! I didn't know you had a dog!"

"You didn't? I talk about her all the time."

Susie's face fell. "Oh."

Norman looked to Wally, and paused when he saw the kid's expression. 

"Hey, I know that look. Come on in the kitchen, help me hand out some drinks."

Wally hesitated, before reluctantly nodding, still looking at the dog. 

Norman led Wally to his kitchen, a small cozy space separate from the rest of the house. 

As he pulled some sodas and bottles out of his fridge, Wally stood by awkwardly, waiting to help. 

"So, ya heard anything about where Henry's dogs are goin'?"

Wally stared. "Uh...n-no...?"

"Hm. That's a shame. Kinda wanted to take in a few myself, but Daisy wouldn' like it."

"Daisy?"

"My dog."

"Oh."

Norman handed Wally a few sodas. "Hand these out will ya? I got some others in the back for a few of us older folks."

Wally nodded, and headed back out to the living room with the others. Susie was petting Norman's dog with a distant look on her face, with Sammy sitting awkwardly next to her. 

Wally handed them each a soda and sat down next to Susie, replaying his conversation with Norman in his head. How could he have forgotten about Henry's dogs? 

Now that he thought about it...what was going to happen to all of his stuff? Would the army save it for if he came back? 

No...not if. When. When he came back. 

Norman returned to the group and handed a bottle to Susie and Sammy. Wally hesitantly sipped at his root beer, watching the others make polite conversation, eventually tuning out their voices altogether. 

"So Wally, how's the cleaning going?"

"Huh?" Wally snapped back to attention. Were they talking to him?

"The cleaning. Yknow, that thing ya do at work."

"Oh it's u-uh...it's alright..."

"Not too tough now is it? What with all that blasted ink everywhere."

"Oh, I'd hoped you all wouldn't notice, I've been trying to keep up with it."

Norman waved this comment away. "Nonsense. If you tell me, I think Joey's gone off the deep end. Who needs that much ink anyway? What's he thinkin'?"

"Huh. Yeah."

\----- 

The rest of the night was a blur. When he looked back on it, Wally still wouldn't be able to tell exactly what happened. Everyone had been getting comfortable, a bit loud, and then Sammy was offering him a sip of whatever they had and the rest was history. 

All Wally knew was he woke up the next morning at Susie's house with an awful headache, wearing a hand-knit sweater. 

Wally tried to sit up, but his headache intensified and he groaned as he lay back down. What did he do?

The noise attracted Susie, who poked her head out from the hallway.

"You're up!"

"Wh...what happened?"

"Aw, sugar, we all had a bit too much to drink. Wouldn't be able to tell ya a thing."

"What...? But I...I couldn't..."

"Why not? You're old enough. If you ask me I'd say your parents are too strict."

Wally stared at her.

"...Oh. _Oh,_ sorry I er..."

"No no, it's fine. They are, you're not wrong."

Susie bit her lip and ducked back into the hall. 

Wally looked around. Susie's house seemed cozy, with lots of knitting material and scented candles. Wally looked closer, and began to notice some...odd things with the room. 

Half-finished blankets and sweaters were stacked up next to a nearby rocking chair. Small colorful notes adorned the room, with things like "Call Mr. So-And-So about that thing you needed!" And "Purple blanket needs to be done first!" Written on them. 

"...Hey Susie?"

"Hm?"

"How am I gonna make it to work?"

Susie came back and sat next to Wally on the couch, a small cup of water in hand. 

"Oh, honey, you're not going anywhere today. I already called Joey. He says we can go one day without a janitor. You're going to stay right here and rest."

Wally stared and her in amazement. "You mean I don't have to go?"

"Of course not, you don't feel well. How can you work like this?"

"You mean...I'm sick...and I can just...stay in? I don't...I don't _have_ to work?"

"No! Why would you?"

"Wow." Wally couldn't believe his luck. He turned on the couch, and closed his eyes. "Wow."

\----- 

"Aw c'mon Sammy, not you too!"

"Sorry Norman, but the band room is going under renovations now too."

"Sammy, pal, I thought you were better than this. Why's the band room under renovations _now?"_

Sammy shurgged, looking down at the papers in his hand. "That's just how it is."

Norman frowned and walked off to find another spot for the orchestra to practice. Sammy turned to go to his office, humming a few bars of a tune.

Sammy stopped, and suddenly looked behind him. He just caught sight of someone turning the corner. Curious, he decided to investigate. 

He knew that hall was a dead end, it only had a few desks in it. As he slowly approached, he could hear a familiar voice whispering. 

"Hey...don't worry, you're safe now! Look, I've even got food, see?"

" _What_ are you doing?!" Sammy shouted, causing Wally to hit his head painfully on the bottom of the desk he was crouched under.

"O-Oh uh...hi Sammy I was just uh..."

Suddenly, Wally's coat pocket moved. Sammy raised an eyebrow. Sighing, Wally reached into his pocket and pulled out a small dog. 

"...What...on earth...is that."

"Uh...it's a dog...?"

"I know it's a dog you idiot! What's it doing here?"

Wally hesitated, petting the dog for a bit before talking.

"...This is Steve. He was one of Henry's dogs."

"That doesn't answer my question Pauly."

Wally frowned. Sammy hadn't purposefully called him the wrong name in ages. It was something he only did when he was really upset with him. 

"Well, I got a letter saying that Henry wanted _me_ to take care of Steve instead of him getting adopted by someone else."

"But why did you bring it _here?"_

"Uh...because my parents kicked me out of the house until I got rid of him."

"Let me guess. You're not getting rid of it."

"Of course not!"

Sammy sighed. "Joey doesn't allow pets, Collie."

"I know that! I'm not a complete idiot! Just let me keep him here for a few days! I'm already cleaning up _your_ mess, it wouldn't hurt to clean up after a dog too!"

It took Sammy a second to register he had been insulted. He was rolling up his sleeves, ready to make Wally regret his choice of words when Joey suddenly turned the corner.

"What's going on here?"

They both froze. Sammy eagerly walked up to Joey and explained in great detail that _Wally_ had been keeping a _dog_ in the studio. Wally pet Steve and grinned guiltily at Joey. 

"I see...Wally, how long has Steve been here already?"

"Uh...about...about two days."

Joey turned to Sammy. "If I couldn't figure out there was a dog here for two whole days, I'm sure it'll be fine to keep it around a little longer don't you think?"

Sammy sputtered, trying to come up with an argument. Joey winked at Wally and walked off. 

Grinning, Wally pulled a dog treat out of his pocket and gave it to Steve. "Good boy."

\----- 

Click!

" _Hello, testing, testing. This is Joey Drew, recording the events happening at Joey Drew Studios. Currently, the building is undergoing shall we say...renovations, to make room for a new installment that will save the cartoons: The Ink Machine._ "

" _This wonderous machine is going to be our salvation! For you see, soon, we will be able to produce new animations at a record-breaking pace! No other studio can say that they managed to bring their characters to life on the page!_ "

" _Of course, to do this requires a cost. We've already lost some good members of our crew, but a few good workers remain. They are the key, they will help bring this to pass! And soon, everyone will know the name of Joey Drew Studios!_ "

" _If you're listening Henry...this is all for you. I'll invite you someday. Get you to come see what we've all been working towards. It'll be something you won't soon forget, I can promise you that._ "

Click.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy this was a joy to write! I hope you've all enjoyed reading it all much as I've enjoyed writing it! If you want to see more of the Pre-Bendy Buddies crew, they're over on the tumblr blog @sammy-and-the-au-machine!
> 
> Thank you all so much for sticking with me to the end! Until next time!


End file.
